Well, schools around here started up today, but I'm still working on figuring out our schedule and making lesson plans. Plus, it's totally still summer, so we're not starting till after Labor Day. But here's what we're looking at using this year. And yes, this is mostly just a post for me to look at and help me keep track of it all! :-)
Eli - 1st Grade (Age 7)
Language Arts:
Reading- Funnix Beginning Reading (continuing where we left off last year), BOB Books, various sight word activities, *read-alouds
Handwriting- Handwriting Without Tears "My Printing Book", Kumon "My Book of Mazes: Around the World"
Grammar- First Language Lessons for the Well-Trained Mind: Level 1
Spelling- All About Spelling Level 1
Writing- Journals, etc.
Math: Math-U-See Alpha (picking up where we left off), Kumon "My First Book of Money: Counting Coins" and possibly other money and time workbooks
Music: Kids Guitar Course 1 (We'll see!)
P.E.: Taekwondo, tumbling, fall outdoor soccer, possibly swimming lessons, roller skating
Lena - Pre-K (Age 5)
Language Arts:
Reading- letter review workbooks (dollar store type), Funnix
Handwriting- Handwriting Without Tears "My First School Book" and/or "Letters and Numbers for Me"
Writing- Journals, etc.
Fine Motor Skills- Kumon "My First Book of Cutting", etc.
Math: Math-U-See Primer
P.E.: Dance, tumbling, possibly swimming lessons, roller skating
Together
Science: Unit studies designed around "The Magic School Bus" DVD series (Yay Pinterest and library books!)
Social Studies: USA study using various resources, including Road Trip USA
Bible: Buck Denver Asks: What's In The Bible DVD series, etc.
Art: ???
*We will be attempting to read some chapter books aloud together this year. Here are a few that I'm thinking about reading:
Mrs. Piggle Wiggle
Mr. Popper's Penguins
Charlotte's Web
Stuart Little
We will also do music, art and P.E. at our bi-weekly co-op.
WOW, that looks like A LOT! Some things will get a lot more focus than others. Obviously we won't be doing everything every day. In fact, we're planning on doing a four day school week, Monday through Thursday. We'll have co-op every other Friday, and the other Fridays will be free for whatever we want! I am looking forward to finding our homeschool groove this year, and learning a lot!
Showing posts with label homeschool. Show all posts
Showing posts with label homeschool. Show all posts
Tuesday, August 20, 2013
Friday, August 2, 2013
Summer Doesn't End
**Welcome, welcome to my new followers! I am SO overjoyed to have you here! You all are making me do a happy dance!**
It seems that around blogland and Facebook, there is a common topic being discussed these days. The fact that summer will soon be coming to an end. Already! Mommies are sending their kiddos back to school, or off to school for the first time! Teachers are preparing to go back to work. But for our family, it doesn't have to end. Sure, the weather will change, and our schedule will be adjusted, but we still get to be together.
As most of you know, I am a stay at home mom. But you may not all know that I am also a homeschooling mom. This year I will have a first grader, a pre-Ker, and my tiny tot. I'm not sure how I'm going to balance everything yet. I definitely want to keep blogging, as it is a wonderful creative outlet for me! SO, it may be quiet around here for a few weeks, as I plan and prepare for the school year. Please stick around! I will be back!
It seems that around blogland and Facebook, there is a common topic being discussed these days. The fact that summer will soon be coming to an end. Already! Mommies are sending their kiddos back to school, or off to school for the first time! Teachers are preparing to go back to work. But for our family, it doesn't have to end. Sure, the weather will change, and our schedule will be adjusted, but we still get to be together.
As most of you know, I am a stay at home mom. But you may not all know that I am also a homeschooling mom. This year I will have a first grader, a pre-Ker, and my tiny tot. I'm not sure how I'm going to balance everything yet. I definitely want to keep blogging, as it is a wonderful creative outlet for me! SO, it may be quiet around here for a few weeks, as I plan and prepare for the school year. Please stick around! I will be back!
Saturday, March 16, 2013
b's have bellies, & d's...
Last month Lena was working on learning the letter 'D', and was struggling to tell the difference between the lowercase 'd' and the lowercase 'b," as is common in preschool I'm sure. As I searched around Pinterest, I came across this...
I'll admit, I wasn't so sure about the picture myself, but thought I'd give it a try. It sounded like people had had good success with it. So I drew this amazing picture on our white board...
I brought Lena over and enthusiastically explained to her that she could tell the difference between the two letters by remembering that "b's have bellies, and d's don't!" She looked up at the board and very matter-of-factly said to me, "That looks like a butt." And... we both erupted into a flurry of giggles! She said exactly what I was thinking. I mean, seriously, who doesn't see a big ole' booty when they look at that?! And how helpful is this gonna be? If a 'd' has a butt... that starts with 'b' too! And so does booty, which of course I mentioned and was rewarded with even more laughter! So what we learned was that "b's have bellies, and d's have butts." That's some solid homeschooling right there. ;-)
"b's have bellies, & d's don't!"
I brought Lena over and enthusiastically explained to her that she could tell the difference between the two letters by remembering that "b's have bellies, and d's don't!" She looked up at the board and very matter-of-factly said to me, "That looks like a butt." And... we both erupted into a flurry of giggles! She said exactly what I was thinking. I mean, seriously, who doesn't see a big ole' booty when they look at that?! And how helpful is this gonna be? If a 'd' has a butt... that starts with 'b' too! And so does booty, which of course I mentioned and was rewarded with even more laughter! So what we learned was that "b's have bellies, and d's have butts." That's some solid homeschooling right there. ;-)
Friday, March 8, 2013
Box of Goodness
Thanks to our tax return, I was able to order a few things that have been on my Amazon wish list for a while, and a box of goodness arrived on my doorstep yesterday! Woohoo!
First up, a 2013 wall calendar. It's about time, huh?! Better than last year... I never got one at all! So sorry if I missed your birthday! ;-) This year I went with a Charley Harper calendar. I had one for 2011, and I love the colorful artwork! The best part of buying calendars full of amazing art is that you can frame your favorites later on for some cheap wall art! We used three pages from a Georgia O'Keefe calendar to decorate the dining room of our first house. And I'm considering using some pages from our 2011 Charley Harper calendar in our current living room...
I FINALLY got my very own copy of the Young House Love book! I was sort of hoping that I would get it for Christmas or my birthday, but nope. So I bought it for myself. I can't wait to spend some quality time with it. I've been following the Young House Love blog for a few years, and John and Sherry are amazing, so I am confident that this book will not disappoint!
And now a few things to use in our home school! Lena, our four year old, is doing preschool this year. Her main focus is learning her letters and numbers, and it's been challenging. The girl is just NOT detail oriented... And she just doesn't really care! I had heard of the Leap Frog Letter Factory DVD a couple years ago while doing preschool with Eli, but he caught on so quickly with what we were doing that I never bothered to buy it. But Lena needs all the help she can get! Hopefully this DVD will trick her into learning something!
Eli, our six year old, is in kindergarten this year, and learning how to read! I had heard great things about BOB books way back when, too, but never bought them. Recently, my cousin's wife Cami suggested them as a good way to encourage Eli to read. I'm excited to hear him read them! I got this one, this one, and this one to start with!
One area where our homeschool has been lacking lately is in science, which is silly, because science is my faaaavorite! We have a few Magic School Bus books, and have checked out a few DVDs from the library, so when I saw the complete series for a great price, I just had to snatch it up! I haven't had a chance yet to look at what all 52 episodes are about, but I'm hoping to start watching them and doing activities to go along with each one. I think all of us are going to love it!
Have you ordered yourself anything fun lately??
First up, a 2013 wall calendar. It's about time, huh?! Better than last year... I never got one at all! So sorry if I missed your birthday! ;-) This year I went with a Charley Harper calendar. I had one for 2011, and I love the colorful artwork! The best part of buying calendars full of amazing art is that you can frame your favorites later on for some cheap wall art! We used three pages from a Georgia O'Keefe calendar to decorate the dining room of our first house. And I'm considering using some pages from our 2011 Charley Harper calendar in our current living room...
I FINALLY got my very own copy of the Young House Love book! I was sort of hoping that I would get it for Christmas or my birthday, but nope. So I bought it for myself. I can't wait to spend some quality time with it. I've been following the Young House Love blog for a few years, and John and Sherry are amazing, so I am confident that this book will not disappoint!
And now a few things to use in our home school! Lena, our four year old, is doing preschool this year. Her main focus is learning her letters and numbers, and it's been challenging. The girl is just NOT detail oriented... And she just doesn't really care! I had heard of the Leap Frog Letter Factory DVD a couple years ago while doing preschool with Eli, but he caught on so quickly with what we were doing that I never bothered to buy it. But Lena needs all the help she can get! Hopefully this DVD will trick her into learning something!
Eli, our six year old, is in kindergarten this year, and learning how to read! I had heard great things about BOB books way back when, too, but never bought them. Recently, my cousin's wife Cami suggested them as a good way to encourage Eli to read. I'm excited to hear him read them! I got this one, this one, and this one to start with!
 |
| Super frustrated that this picture won't post the right way! Grrr! |
One area where our homeschool has been lacking lately is in science, which is silly, because science is my faaaavorite! We have a few Magic School Bus books, and have checked out a few DVDs from the library, so when I saw the complete series for a great price, I just had to snatch it up! I haven't had a chance yet to look at what all 52 episodes are about, but I'm hoping to start watching them and doing activities to go along with each one. I think all of us are going to love it!
Have you ordered yourself anything fun lately??
Monday, December 31, 2012
2012 Christmas Letter
Happy New Year's Eve! One goal I have for 2013 is to make an effort to be more consistent with blogging. I'm thinking I'll start with once a week... I decided to start off easy by sharing our Christmas letter. I wrote this a month ago, so when it says we'll be celebrating a birthday soon, yeah... we already did! :) Anyways, here it is, enjoy!
Hello! This is my first ever Christmas letter! I've never written one before, but in the last two years (yeah, I never even got a Christmas card sent out last year) our family has experienced a few major life changes, so I thought now would be the perfect time to send out an update!
One of those changes is our location! Yep, we moved! I know this is old news to some, as it's been over a year, but I do want to make sure that everyone has our current address. We are enjoying our new home, and we absolutely love being back in Clear Lake!
Perhaps the most exciting event of the last couple years was the addition of our sweet Koen James to our family. He was due to arrive on Christmas day, but blessed us with an early arrival on December 17th, 2011. He weighed in at 8 lbs 10 oz, a big baby if I do say so myself! We will be celebrating his 1stbirthday in a couple weeks, and he is already walking! He is more and more fun every day!
Lena turned four on June 21st. What a joy she is! She spends her days at home, working on learning her letters and numbers and playing with her brothers!
Eli turned six on August 24th. How did our first little miracle baby grow up so fast?!? He is doing kindergarten at home this year, learning how to read, addition, and some world geography! We are so proud of all that he has accomplished so far!
Autumn (that's me!) is keeping busy teaching, feeding, changing, cleaning up after (etc., etc., etc....) the three previously mentioned ragamuffins! My hands may be full, but my heart is overflowing!
Joe's business, Advantage Business Solutions, has been growing and thriving, praise the Lord! They have been able to hire a few new employees and opened an office, which means that Joe is no longer working from home. He's a busy guy!
We will also be celebrating another big milestone on January 11th, our 10 year wedding anniversary! What a crazy, beautiful roller coaster the last decade has been! We are so blessed to have each other and our amazing family!
So that's what's been going on in our neck of the woods. To those that live near, I hope to see you soon and often. To those who live far, I hope you'll keep in touch. Thank you all for being a part of our lives.
Merry Christmas to you and yours! And a happy New Year, too! :-)
With love,
Joe, Autumn, Eli, Lena & Koen
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